'The Conjuring'

The director who launched the "Saw" franchise, James Wan, shows he has what it takes to freshen up other horror concepts with this paranormal investigation melodrama ... which was a surprisingly strong force at the box office.

Vera Farmiga ("Bates Motel") and Patrick Wilson - also one of Wan's "Insidious"stars - play supposed experts of the supernatural who end up in over their heads when they probe a family's apparently haunted farmhouse. DVD extra: "making-of" documentary. *** (R: AS, P, V) (Also on Blu-ray and On Demand)